Sunday, October 18, 2015

Team Belen files COC for 2016 election

DAGUPAN CITY – Mayor Belen T. Fernandez and her team Balon Dagupan filed their Certificate of Candidacy on October 14, two days before the deadline on October 16 at the Commission on Election (Comelec) office in the city.

Fourth District Rep. Ma. Georgina P. De Venecia and former city Mayor Alipio F. Fernandez joined the team in a solid show of support to the candidates of the Liberal Party in the city.

Councilor Alipio Serafin Fernandez, the runningmate of Mayor Fernandez, filed the next day along with her cousin-in law re-electionist Councilor Maybelyn Fernandez.

Comprising the Balon Dagupan are four re-electionists councilors Joey Netu Tamayo, Alvin Coquia, Jeslito Seen and Marvin Fabia while the new faces to watch are Fe Mejia Vidal, Mark Brian Tan, Raiisa G. Vargas and Dennis Canto. Canto is the son of incumbent city councilor Jesus Canto.

Also with the team is former city councilor Alfredo Quinto Jr., the son of former city councilor Alfredo Quinto Sr.

Fe Mejia Vidal is a bangus magnate in the city while Tan was a T.V. personality and used to be a professional model in Manila who grew up in the city and finished his high school at Divine Word Academy of Dagupan.

Vargas is the daughter of Senior Citizen president Luz Gemeniano.

After celebrating Holy Mass at the CSI Stadia, the team went to the office of the Comelec in the city to file their COCs.

The Balon Dagupan team was formally introduced in a press conference at CSI Stadia.

Fernandez disclosed that her re-election bid is a renewal of her commitment to good governance, progress, child’s welfare and protection, of bringing the government to the barangays, and to continue to fight any attempt to commit graft and corruption in the city in line with President Pinoy’s “matuwid na daan” governance.

The city was awarded the Seal of Good Local Governance after passing, with high rating, the three core assessment areas such as good financial housekeeping, disaster preparedness and social protection and the three essential criteria such as business friendly and competitive LGU, peace and order, and environmental management. Either one of the three essential criteria would be enough but Dagupan passed in all the criteria.

Fernandez admits though that the pledge of support of all Dagupeños is the most important seal of approval that she has received.

“This confirms that we are on the right path. We also take this to mean that we are expected to continue to trek the path that we have chosen. But even as we are renewing our commitment today to serve our fellow Dagupenos even more in 2016, we are assuring everyone that the 8 months that we have left in our present term of Office will be spent not in the service of reelection, but in the service of our fellow Dagupenos,” said Fernandez as she invoked everyone to continue with the “matuwid na daan”.

The Team Belen is running under the Liberal Party which endorses the Presidential bid of Mar Roxas and the Vice-Presidential bid of Leni Robredo. (Joseph C. Bacani/CIO)